Method and business process to maintain privacy in distributed recommendation systems
First Claim
1. A method to enable a wireless device to provide recommendations to its user that are appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:
- receiving sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;
processing the sensor signals with a context inference engine;
outputting a current context result from the processing by the context inference engine;
forming a context-activity pair by selecting an activity and pairing it with the current context result;
searching a database of recommendations using the context-activity pair; and
providing recommendations to the user in response to the searching step.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A distributed recommendation system and method are disclosed that provides greater privacy for the user'"'"'s private data. The method distributes the tasks of a recommendation system between wireless devices and network servers, so as to protect the privacy of end users. The system and method provide greater privacy for context-sensitive, adaptive, user interfaces for Internet service usage by wireless devices. The user'"'"'s wireless device sends a current context-activity pair to a network server in response to either the user'"'"'s selection of an activity or automatically. The user'"'"'s wireless device includes a service history log. The activities stored in the service history log include past recommendations made by the network server, past services used, prestored service preferences, and special requested service requirements. Context-activity pair information sent to the server can include any combination of these activities. The server then responds an appropriate recommendation. As the system makes new recommendations to users in response to context-activity pairs submitted by their wireless devices, the server gathers the new context-activity pairs and recommendations and adds them to its context-activity pair database.
535 Citations
77 Claims
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1. A method to enable a wireless device to provide recommendations to its user that are appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:
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receiving sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;
processing the sensor signals with a context inference engine;
outputting a current context result from the processing by the context inference engine;
forming a context-activity pair by selecting an activity and pairing it with the current context result;
searching a database of recommendations using the context-activity pair; and
providing recommendations to the user in response to the searching step. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. An apparatus to enable a wireless device to provide recommendations to its user that are appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:
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a processor;
a memory coupled to the processor, programmed to perform the steps of;
receiving sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;
processing the sensor signals with a context inference engine;
outputting a current context result from the processing by the context inference engine;
forming a context-activity pair by selecting an activity and pairing it with the current context result;
causing a database of recommendations to be searched using the context-activity pair; and
providing recommendations to the user in response to the searching step. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51)
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25. A wireless device to provide recommendations to its user that are appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:
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a sensor for providing sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;
a context inference engine coupled to the sensor, for processing the sensor signals;
said context inference engine providing a current context result from the processing;
a processor coupled to the context inference engine, for forming a context-activity pair by selecting an activity and pairing it with the current context result;
a database coupled to the processor, for providing recommendations using the context-activity pair; and
an output device coupled to the database, for providing the recommendations to the user in response to the context-activity pair.
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26. A business method to enable a wireless device to provide recommendations to its user that are appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:
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characterizing a current environment of the wireless device with a current context result;
forming a context-activity pair by selecting an activity and pairing it with the current context result;
accessing a database of recommendations using the context-activity pair without including any user personal data; and
providing recommendations to the wireless device from the database.
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35. A method to enable a wireless device to provide recommendations to its user that are appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:
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receiving sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;
processing the sensor signals with a context inference engine to produce a set of current context results;
forming a set of context-activity pairs by selecting an activity and pairing it with the set of current context results;
accessing a set of related service history items from a history log;
forming context-activity pair information from the set of current context results and the set of related service history items;
searching a database of recommendations using the context-activity pair information; and
providing recommendations to the user in response to the searching step.
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45. A system to provide recommendations to the user of a wireless device that are appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:
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a sensor in the wireless device for providing sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;
a processor coupled to the sensor, for selecting an activity and pairing it with current sensor information derived from said sensor signals, said processor sending the activity and current sensor information to a server;
a context inference engine in the server coupled to the processor, for processing the current sensor information, said context inference engine providing a current context result from the processing;
a database coupled to the context inference engine, for providing recommendations in response to the activity and current context result; and
an output device in the wireless device and coupled to the database, for providing the recommendations to the user.
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46. A computer program product to enable a wireless device to provide recommendations to its user that are appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:
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a computer readable medium;
program code in said computer readable medium for characterizing a current environment of the wireless device with a current context result;
program code in said computer readable medium for forming a context-activity pair by selecting an activity and pairing it with the current context result;
program code in said computer readable medium for accessing a database of recommendations using the context-activity pair without including any user personal data; and
program code in said computer readable medium for providing recommendations to the wireless device from the database.
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52. A system to enable a wireless device to provide recommendations to its user that are appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:
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a sensor for providing sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;
a context inference engine for processing the sensor signals to produce a current context result;
a history log for storing related service history items;
a processor for forming context-activity pair information from the current context result and the related service history items;
a database for providing recommendations using the context-activity pair information; and
a user interface for providing recommendations to the user in response to the searching step. - View Dependent Claims (53, 54, 55, 56, 58, 59, 60, 61)
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57. A computer program product to enable a wireless device to provide recommendations to its user that are appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:
a computer readable medium;
program code in said computer readable medium for receiving sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;
program code in said computer readable medium for processing the sensor signals with a context inference engine to produce a current context result;
program code in said computer readable medium for accessing related service history items from a history log;
program code in said computer readable medium for forming context-activity pair information from the current context result and the related service history items;
program code in said computer readable medium for searching a database of recommendations using the context-activity pair information; and
program code in said computer readable medium for providing recommendations to the user in response to the searching step.
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62. A method to enable a wireless device to automatically provide recommendations to its user that are appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:
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automatically processing sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device to produce a current context result;
accessing related service history items from a history log, including past recommendations received by the wireless device and past services used by the user of the wireless device;
forming context-activity pair information from the current context result and the related service history items;
searching a database of recommendations using the context-activity pair information; and
providing recommendations to the user in response to the searching step.
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63. A system to enable a wireless device to automatically provide recommendations to its user that are appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:
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a mobile wireless device for automatically processing sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device to produce a current context result;
a history log in the wireless device, for storing related service history items, including past recommendations received by the wireless device and past services used by the user of the wireless device;
a processor coupled to the history log in the wireless device, for forming context-activity pair information from the current context result and the related service history items;
a database server wirelessly coupled to the processor, for searching recommendations using the context-activity pair information; and
a user interface coupled to the processor in the wireless device, for providing recommendations to the user in response to the searching step.
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64. A method to enable a wireless device to automatically provide recommendations to its user that are appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:
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automatically processing in a mobile wireless device, sensor signals characterizing a current environment, to produce a current context result;
storing in a history log in the wireless device, related service history items, including past recommendations received by the wireless device and past services used by the user of the wireless device;
forming context-activity pair information in the wireless device, from the current context result and the related service history items;
transmitting the context-activity pair information to a database server, for searching recommendations related to the current context and the related service history items; and
receiving the related recommendations at the wireless device for presentation to the user. - View Dependent Claims (65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70)
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71. A method to enable a network server coupled to a wireless device to automatically provide recommendations to the user of the device that are appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:
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storing in a network server, prior recommendations that have been made to other users in past contexts;
storing in the network server, prior services used by other users in past contexts;
receiving in the network server, context-activity pair information from a wireless device, including a current context and related service history items, the related service history items including past recommendations received by the wireless device and past services used by the user of the wireless device;
searching in the network server, for selected ones of said prior recommendations and prior services as new recommendations related to the current context and the related service history items; and
sending the new recommendations to the wireless device for presentation to the user. - View Dependent Claims (72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77)
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Specification